Wortley: The Yorkshire birthplace of a 'gentleman rogue' highwayman

On arriving in the village, which stands at 735ft above sea level, one is immediately struck by its historic stone houses and magnificent views of the vast expanse of surrounding green countryside, the vale of Worsbrough and beyond, which make Wortley a popular destination for walkers and nature lovers.

Numerous routes from the village of 685 residents connect it to the 215-mile Trans Pennine Trail, a long-distance path running from the Irish Sea at Southport to the North Sea at Hornsea.

But with busy roads through the village you wouldn’t describe Wortley as tranquil and the glorious rural landscapes belie the area’s industrial heritage.

Close to the village and on the banks of the River Don stands Wortley Top Forge, a scheduled ancient monument to South Yorkshire’s iron Industry.

The origins of the water powered forge dates back to at least 1640 and while the site has been used for bloomeries, the earliest form of smelter, and fineries, creating wrought iron from pig iron, it is perhaps hammer-welded wrought iron railway axles that were manufactured from 1840 that the site is best known for.

The site now hosts a popular industrial museum featuring the original three water wheels and water-powered drop hammers, while a building beside the forge is used for restoration work and showcasing steam engines, machines and hand tools.

Wortley started to develop as a settlement around the crossroads of the Sheffield to Halifax and Cheshire to Rotherham roads crossed, but despite attempts to establish itself by holding markets, it was not until the 18th century, when the Wortley family commissioned the rebuilding of Wortley Hall, that the village’s route into the future was established.

The ancestral home of the Earls of Wharncliffe stood over the village’s east for hundreds of years before the current grade ll* listed building, partly attributed to Venetian architect Giacomo Leoni, and landscaped and ornamental grounds were established.

It is certainly impressive and reflects the reciprocal importance of the aristocratic family in Wortley.

The award-winning Wortley Men’s Club, which now boasts about 700 members, was formed in 1945 by the Earl of Wharncliffe for local residents as an alternative to the Wortley Arms, which was being frequented by US servicemen.

Before Wortley’s railway station was closed a decade later less than a year after the Sheffield-Ashton under Lyne-Manchester line had been electrified, Lord Wharncliffe had a personal waiting room and a covered veranda on the station approach under which his horse-drawn carriage would pull up.

During the Second World War parts of the hall were occupied by the military and in the following years when the Wharncliffe family gave up living there and made the hall available to lease local labour and cooperative movement activists took it on to run it as an educational and holiday centre for the workers benefit.

Volunteers carried out extensive restoration of the 18th century features including the painted ceilings, ornamental friezes and wood carvings at the hall, and the body which runs the popular wedding venue is still a member of the co-operative union.

Volunteers continue to contribute to the maintenance of the hall and 26 acres of the surrounding woodlands and gardens, which are laid out in the Italianate Palladian style, with features such as a walled kitchen garden which provides produce for the hall’s restaurants as well as farmers markets.

The gardens, which are open to the public and are free to visit, also include a central fountain surrounded by floral displays in urns and a sunken garden.

Among the Wortley estate’s most famous residents, 18th century poet Lady Mary Wortley Montagu was an early adopter of inoculation against smallpox and helped bring the practice to England, influencing others to adopt it.

It was during her husband’s spell as British ambassador to the Ottoman royal court in Constantinople that she witnessed the local method of inoculating against smallpox, which involved deliberately giving people a tiny dose of the disease.

An obelisk dedicated to her memory at Wentworth Castle, to the north of Wortley, is believed to be among the oldest monuments in the country dedicated to a non-royal woman.

While evidence of the Wharncliffe family’s residence in the village is still clear, that of Wortley’s most notorious son is less so.

Highwayman John Nevison is said to have been born in the village in 1639, before running away aged 13 and later establishing a reputation as a “gentleman rogue” stealing from travellers on the Great North Road before being hanged on York’s Knavesmire in 1684.

However, the grade II listed St Leonard’s Church, built about 70 years after the outlaw’s execution, cannot be inadvertently overlooked on a trip to the village, standing proudly at the centre of the conservation area.

Its imposing tower contains eight bells hung for full circle ringing by the church’s active team.

The heart of the village is opposite the church, at the curiously suburb-like named Park Avenue, with a village store, post office and a cafe beside the main bus stop.

There have been numerous other clubs and facilities established in and around the village, including a traditional pub and restaurant which has seen a new management team take over this year, a thriving rugby club and just half a mile from the village centre a 130-year-old golf club with a reputation for fast and undulating greens, which all attest to how active the community is.